Sequoia Capital is one of the oldest and most influential venture capital firms in the world. Don Valentine founded it in 1972 in Menlo Park, California, with an early focus on semiconductor and technology companies. Over five decades, the firm backed companies that collectively shaped modern technology and finance. Total assets under management across all Sequoia funds have been reported at over $85 billion, though the firm does not disclose a single consolidated AUM figure publicly.
In 2023, Sequoia completed a major structural split. Its India and Southeast Asia operations became Peak XV Partners, and its China business rebranded as HongShan (previously Sequoia China). The remaining US and Europe entity continues under the Sequoia Capital name, led by Roelof Botha as global steward, alongside partners including Alfred Lin, Pat Grady, and Shaun Maguire – the latter focused primarily on crypto and defense technology. This restructuring was driven by geopolitical tensions and the need for each regional entity to operate independently of US regulatory scrutiny.
Sequoia entered crypto early by institutional standards. Its investments span layer-1 infrastructure, fintech bridges, and consumer crypto applications. The firm led or co-led rounds in Coinbase before its 2021 Nasdaq listing, an investment widely regarded as one of the best returns in crypto venture history. Other notable positions include Fireblocks, Polygon, LayerZero, and Magic Eden. Sequoia also backed FTX – and that bet failed entirely. The firm wrote off its roughly $150 million FTX investment in November 2022 following the exchange's collapse and Sam Bankman-Fried's fraud conviction. Sequoia publicly acknowledged the loss and later posted a post-mortem on its due diligence process. It remains one of the most discussed VC failures in crypto history.
Notable investments
- Coinbase – early-stage backing before the 2021 IPO; strong multi-billion return
- Fireblocks – institutional crypto custody and transfer infrastructure
- Polygon (Matic) – Ethereum scaling and Web3 developer platform
- LayerZero – cross-chain messaging protocol
- Magic Eden – multi-chain NFT marketplace
- Stripe – payments infrastructure with growing crypto and stablecoin payment rails
- ARQ (prev. DolarApp) – US-Mexico dollar account fintech; $70M round closed March 2026
- FTX – crypto exchange; total loss after 2022 collapse (notable failure)
Team
Roelof Botha serves as the firm's global steward following Doug Leone's transition out of day-to-day management. Botha joined Sequoia in 2003 after serving as CFO of PayPal and has led investments in YouTube, Instagram, and Square. Shaun Maguire is the primary partner covering crypto and defense; he has been publicly vocal about Bitcoin and Web3 infrastructure on social media. Alfred Lin focuses on consumer and enterprise software. The firm operates with a relatively flat partner structure and runs an annual scout program that has seeded dozens of emerging managers. More information on current partners is available on Sequoia's official site.
Recent activity
In the 18 months through early 2026, Sequoia accelerated its AI infrastructure bets – most visibly through its position in OpenAI, which it backed across multiple rounds. The firm also participated in rounds for Mistral AI and several AI agent startups. On the crypto side, Sequoia joined the ARQ (formerly DolarApp) $70 million Series C in March 2026, continuing its thesis around dollar-denominated financial products for Latin American users. The firm has publicly signaled interest in stablecoin payment infrastructure as regulatory clarity improves in the US under the 2025-2026 legislative cycle.
Sequoia remains among the most competitive firms for founders to pitch. Its brand, network, and long fund lifecycle give it structural advantages – particularly in markets where patient capital matters. Its FTX loss showed that even deep diligence can miss fraud at scale. The firm's willingness to publish a post-mortem on that failure was unusual and earned it credibility for transparency. With 23 tracked crypto and Web3 portfolio companies and a track record that spans the dot-com era through the current AI cycle, Sequoia remains a tier-one signal for any project it backs.
